Earthmoving operations typically employ various types of earthmoving machines to transform the topographical characteristics of a work site. For example, an excavator may be employed to dig a trench. Similarly, a bulldozer may be employed for clearing or pushing material to a desired grade. Typically, a marker, such as a stake or flag, can be placed to mark a particular location. However, conventional markers may be limited in their ability to notify an operator of the earthmoving machine of an area of interest. These conventional markers provide little more than mark a particular location. For some earthmoving operations, additional information may be required to determine if earth is to be moved to, or removed from, the location the marker represents. Further, performing an earthmoving operation at the location of a conventional marker can remove, and/or conceal, the marker. As such, conventional markers may not be suitable for certain earthmoving operations.
Another disadvantage of conventional earthmoving operations may be complications associated with viewing a reference mark and/or a work site from an earthmoving machine. For example, in certain earthmoving machines, an operator may not have a complete view of a work site from a cab of the earthmoving machine. Similarly, an operator may not be able to identify a reference marker from the cab of certain earthmoving machines. Thus, operation of the earthmoving machine may be difficult. Further, operation of the earthmoving machine may further be complicated by the size of a particular earthmoving machine and/or obstacles in the vicinity.
While conventional methods of earth moving operations can utilize flags and stakes as markers, such conventional markers may not satisfy operation requirements of certain earthmoving machines.